Great leaders view conflict as a positive. They value the art of passionately debating, challenging each person’s perspectives and assumptions, and wrestling with all the angles of a difficult situation. 

Great leaders don’t view conflict as personal, it doesn’t involve judging one another’s ideas and it doesn’t leave a lingering resentment of others, or negative energy. 

How about you? How do you view conflict at work?

When confronted by a difficult conversation, frustrating email, or challenging personality at work how do you respond? Are you calm, present, and regulated, or do you tend to lose control and rule with an iron fist?

If the switch from reacting emotionally to staying present and balanced is harder for you, you aren’t alone. Don’t be discouraged if you need some help working through your default programming, it’s likely had a hold of you since childhood.

Research shows that teams operating with psychological safety have employees who are less likely to leave, more likely to harness the power of diversity, and ultimately, who are more productive and successful.

When creating world-class cultures where extraordinary teams can thrive, great leaders foster a key component, psychological safety. A supportive environment in which all team members feel safe to take risks, voice their opinions, and ask judgment-free questions. A culture where managers provide air cover and create safe zones so employees feel protected and comfortable letting down their guard. 

“It’s kind of working,” he’d been telling himself for the last several weeks. “Maybe if I just try harder, I can rehabilitate him,” he rationalized. And so he kept putting it off. Coming up with second and third chances. In the meantime, frustrating and angering the team members around the individual. In a grey area, going back and forth in his mind. And the decision to let an employee go, all the more challenging for him, given his innate desire to make people happy.